Short Order regularly peruses the restaurant violations that are downloaded for everyone's enjoyment on the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation website. Call it our version of reading the obituaries.

Usually, Miami restaurants come in pretty clean, which is why you don't regularly read inspector reports. If a restaurant doesn't score a perfect rating (and few do), many violations are nit-picky at best. Things like not clearly labeling food items and having a rag lying on the counter for the split second the inspector pays a visit are enough to be written up, but not enough to close a restaurant down. Most restaurants have a few violations, which are categorized into critical and non-critical categories. (That rag lying around is considered non-critical. A roach crawling on the rag is critical).

So we were surprised when we went down the weekly list on the department's website and saw that during an inspection conducted on March 9, Einstein Bros. Bagels on 13710 SW 88th Street was cited with 25 different violations. Of the 25 violations, 12 of them were listed as critical. Some of the critical violations included:

Ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food prepared on site and held more than 24 hours with not properly date marked. salmon, tomatoes

Ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food prepared on site and held more than 24 hours with not properly date marked. yogurts

Working containers of food removed from original container not identified by common name. flour

No conspicuously located thermometer in holding unit. inside walk in cooler . the thermometer on door not working.

We called Einstein Noah's corporate headquarters in Lakewood, Colorado, and received this reply from Brian Unger, Chief Restaurant Officer:

This inspection report is completely unacceptable to us and does not

reflect our high operating standards. We take these inspections very

seriously and immediately took the following actions:

Directed the Area Business Manager to ensure the restaurant meets both Einstein's and the local Health Department standards

Reviewed and reinforced our Daily Food Safety practices with the General Manager and all crew

Conducted unannounced shops on the restaurant to verify compliance of our operation's standards

We always strive to maintain the highest standards of quality and food safety.

It should be noted that none of the violations warranted an emergency closure. The restaurant remains operational and, according to the above statement, is now up to both Florida and company standards.

Laine Doss is the food and spirits editor for Miami New Times, covering the restaurant and bar scene in South Florida. She has been featured on Cooking Channel’s Eat Street and Food Network’s Great Food Truck Race. Doss won an Alternative Weekly award for her feature on what it’s like to wait tables. In a previous life, she appeared off-Broadway and shook many a cocktail as a bartender at venues in South Florida and New York City. When she’s not writing, you can find Doss running some marathon then celebrating at the nearest watering hole.